By Chef Essaid Mahboub. I have cooked professionally for more than 25 years, in Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Canada, and for ten of those years I taught culinary students in Mexico City.
In every kitchen I have worked in, I have seen the same thing: a good knife, a cook who says it has gone dull, and a honing steel being used as if it were a sharpener. Most dull knives are not ruined. They are simply being cared for the wrong way.
The short answer
- Honing straightens the edge. It removes almost no metal and you can do it often.
- Sharpening grinds away a little steel to create a new edge. You do it only when honing no longer brings the knife back.
What is really happening to the edge
Under magnification, a sharp edge is a very thin line. With use, that line does not only wear away. It also bends slightly to one side, like a blade of grass that has been stepped on. A bent edge feels dull even though the steel is still there. Honing pushes it back into line.
After many months of cutting, the edge is truly worn and rounded. No amount of honing helps then. The knife needs sharpening.
How often should you do each?
- Honing: in a professional kitchen, before service or every day of heavy use. At home, a few passes every week or two is plenty.
- Sharpening: a home cook who cuts several times a week usually needs it once or twice a year. A busy kitchen needs it far more often.
A simple test: if the knife slips on the skin of a tomato instead of biting into it, try honing first. If it still slips, it needs sharpening.
How to sharpen with a whetstone
- Soak the stone if the maker says so, and set it on a damp towel so it does not slide.
- Start with a medium stone (around 1000 grit). Hold the knife at about 15 to 20 degrees. Japanese-style knives are usually sharpened at the lower end, Western knives at the higher end.
- Push the edge across the stone with light, even pressure. Keep the same angle. Angle consistency matters more than force.
- Work one side until you feel a thin burr on the opposite side, then switch sides.
- Finish on a fine stone (3000 grit or higher), then wipe the blade clean and test on paper or a tomato.
The mistakes I see most
- Using a steel on very hard knives. Hard steels such as VG10 can chip if you press a coarse steel against them. Use a fine ceramic rod, or go straight to the stone.
- Pressing too hard. Heavy pressure does not make the knife sharper. It makes the angle wander.
- Using the dishwasher. Heat, water and knocking against other items dull the edge and can damage the handle. Wash by hand and dry at once.
- Cutting on glass, stone or ceramic. Use wood or soft plastic boards.
My advice
Do not wait until the knife is truly dull. A knife that is kept sharp takes only a few minutes to touch up. A knife that has been neglected takes much longer to bring back. Look after the edge and a good knife will serve you for many years.
Want to know more about choosing and caring for your knife? Read our Damascus chef knife care guide and our complete guide to chef knives.